Relentless
by Baileyrose25
Summary: Though the plagues from the Dark Forest have dwindled, a new evil is on the rise, though this time in a more physical element. A group of vicious rogues are hell-bent on wiping out the clans for good, but what side will even the most loyal of followers take when both old ties and new romances get thrown into the equation?
1. Pilot

**Hello folks of the Warriors World! It has been moons since I've last updated, and this is the latest little plotline that I've come up with. It's certainly different than anything else I've written before, but I'm quite fond of it so far! So please read, review, and enjoy! (:**

"Those filthy clans are nowhere near as almighty as they believe. They dare call us rogues, scavengers, loners even! But in reality, we are more loyal than any of them.

"We move out to the forest tonight, settling down in the camp just North of Silver Pond. I am afraid to say that a few must remain with Angel and her kits. I do not trust the forest to be safe enough for younglings. For now I want Vixen and Tulip to stay, but in a few days' time I will exchange you both with others. I want every cat here to eventually get a sense for the lakeside."

"But I don't want my mate out there!" Angel howled in response, "I refuse to let him to get hurt."  
"We want one no getting hurt!" Lucifer snapped her back into place, "But Eclipse is one of our strongest fighters. He must stay with us."

I saw the glint of pride flash in his sapphire eyes, nodding silently in thanks for Lucifer's compliment. My gaze moved through the shadows, recognizing most of the faces, though a few were brand new. I spotted a scraggly looking tom huddled next to Sneeze, while a curious she-cat was settled in one of the furthest corners.

"Amber!" Lucifer's sharp yell startled me, and I looked up in obedience, "Lead the first patrol to camp. I will follow close behind."  
I nodded, lifting my haunches to stand and flicking my tail to signify my followers. It was Slip, Sneeze, Moonshine, Dagger, Blossem, and Patches who had been designated to join me, and I counted all six of their heads before slipping through the familiar exiting crack in the wall.

"You have made us all proud Amber," Moonshine purred, padding faster to keep up with my pace, flitting her ears about to be sure that the coast was clear.

"I've merely done what I was told to do," I responded, flattening myself low as we approached the Thunderpath, continuously looking back to make sure all were safe.

"Perhaps," the silver she-cat sighed, flinching as a monster roared ferociously past, "But you've certainly handled it all well."

Recognizing the clear space on the Thunderpath we bolted across in one sweep, panting as we reached the other side; the entrance to the forest.

"What else could I have done? Disobey Lucifer? That would have been most foolish."  
Moonshine fell behind for a moment then as we crossed a log over the trickling river, claws tight and tails out to maintain our balance. After assuring myself everyone was safely across I weaved continuously through the brambles until the path widened enough for us to walk two-by-two again.

"You _are _his daughter, and he _does _care about you."  
"I am not his daughter," I snarled, "He just says that to justify his actions. I'm only staying here because at this point, I really have nowhere else to go."  
Moonshine quieted down then, resuming her place further back beside Sneeze. Slip, one of Lucifer's other trustees, took the lead beside me and I felt his white tail tip occasionally brush against my own, but I ignored the sensation. Who could be worried about feelings in a time like this? Lucifer was already disappointed that Angel (a normally good hunter) had kitted, but if I did the same there was no doubt he would be insane with rage.

"Now just scramble under the sedge here," I ordered, letting every cat slip inside before I joined them myself.

I was thankful the camp was just how it had been left. A patch of dirt was left clear for prey, one space held merely cobwebs and moss, and the rest of the small clearing held mostly scattered nests. A few were clumped further away from the others, and I presumed they had been set up for Lucifer, Slip, Eclipse, Magpie, and I.

"This place is so cozy!" Blossem mewed, rubbing her pale ginger fur around in the nearest mossy nest. Patches chuckled beside her, rolling a loose pebble around beneath his paw pad.

"When will the others be arriving?" Dagger, one of the eldest of our group, questioned me with piercing eyes and I shrugged raggedly in response.

"Before the sun sets I hope," I licked the gray fur down on my shoulder, "I'm sure Lucifer has a few things he needs to finish up at The Hideout."  
"Like the new recruits?" Dagger's dark ears twitched.

"That's none of your business," I retorted haughtily, "Now I suggest you take Patches and Blossem hunting. They're getting a little fidgety, and the others will be hungry when they arrive."  
"Of course," he bowed his head and turned to exit.

"Be sure to hunt East rather than West, and keep your eyes and ears open."  
"I may not be a trustee, but I'm no kit," Dagger meowed gruffly in response, lifting his tail high in self-pride and leading the youngsters from camp. I sighed and curled up in my own nest, resting my tail over my eyes. I truly wished right now to just venture through the forest, but I knew I should stay here and await Lucifer's arrival.

Both of Dagger's statements had been true though. Lucifer had not expected newbies to wish to join our cluster of cats so close to the date of action, but who was he to turn down a few extra paws? He knew he might regret it later if we ended up short on cats for something, but he didn't want untrustworthy members either. Patches and Blossem were the latest followers, and even though Blossem had arrived weeks before her soon-to-be friend it had taken us much more time to trust her compared to Patches. She was a rambunctious cat, with too much energy for her little body and a seemingly inability to keep still. Lucifer informed her that it was unlikely she would join us on any missions for that sole reason, but she could still hunt and keep the group safe.

But Dagger was also correct in the fact that he was no kit. Lucifer considered me one of the founding members of the group, but in all honesty Dagger had been here before me. I respected him for his age and seemingly endless knowledge, and he respected me for my higher position of power. Although the cat had grown a tad grumpy lately, I knew he would never fail us.

The same was with Vixen, Moonshine, and Little Grey. Vixen had stumbled in just days before me I heard, and he was a normally compassionate cat that was well-trusted. I remembered myself when the sisterly pair, Moonshine and Little Grey, had joined us. Moonshine was determined while Little Grey was nervous, but lately they had seemingly swapped personalities. Little Grey was increasingly eager to please Lucifer and his tasks, while Moonshine tended to cling to the back of the crowd.

"What do you think Lucifer will do?" Slip murmured, and I opened one eye to see him curling up in the nest beside mine, pressing his soft flank up against my own. I sighed and let it slide.

"I honestly don't know. There's no need to kill them since they haven't heard much. But I wouldn't trust them to watch my backside."  
"Who would? The tom was shaking like a leaf the entire time," he trembled violently beside me as though to prove a point and I just chuckled.

"I just hope Lucifer wants to wait a bit…" I murmured, "I'm not ready for things to happen tonight."

Slip narrowed his gaze, "You're not scared of hurting that clan, are you?"  
"Of course not!" I meowed defensively, "My loyalties are to everyone here. I just don't want to be caught, let alone recognized."  
"You haven't seen them any of them since you were a kit. I doubt most of them even remember you. God knows my own siblings hardly remember me," Slip snorted, scooting away a bit now that the conversation was dying down.

"I suppose we'll just wait and see."

**Any questions so far? :D I will most likely post an Alliances chapter next, with the names of all the cats in this rogue group. Also keep in mind this takes place roughly a year and a half (18 moons) after "The Last Hope". PLEASE REVIEW AND I WILL LOVE YOU FOREVER!**


	2. As the Dew Falls

**No reviews yet **** but I am not discouraged! Here's the next chapter (:**

"Get out of my way Dewkit!" I yowled, prancing through the moss of the nursery den that had just been laid down by Seedpaw, and she growled as I scuffed up little bits of it.

"I've spent all morning cleaning up the nursery and this is what I get in return?" she snapped harshly, and Snowkit squeaked at her sudden aggressiveness.

"It's alright Seedpaw, I'll fix it," Cinderheart meowed, running her tail comfortingly down the ginger she-cat's spine, and she instantly relaxed at the touch.

"Thank you so much," she sighed gratefully, slipping out of the den to continue with other apprentice chores.

I turned to watch as the heavily pregnant grey queen reached over to smooth out the moss and bracken with a quiet huff.

"I'm sorry for messing it up," I mewed quietly, looking up bashfully at Cinderheart. She just chuckled softly to herself.

"That's quite alright dear. Gives me something to do around here I suppose since I'm heavier than a rock. I just want these kits to be born so I can move properly!"  
"That should be the case any day now," Brightheart informed her, "At least that's what Jayfeather said not too long ago. Would you like anything?"  
"Brightheart, can we go outside and play?" Dewkit asked, blinking up at her with wide, amber eyes.

"Just stay in the clearing," was all that our mother mumbled in response, before turning her attention to Cinderheart once again. Snowkit yelped in excitement before scampering out of the den, with Dewkit and I right on his heels.

"Race you to Highledge!" I shouted, easily taking the lead over my brothers and hurtling myself across camp. Dustpelt hissed at me as I shot out directly in front of him, but I ignored him and instead yowled my victory as my paw touched the sandy rock first.

"Not fair!" Snowkit snapped, "You got the head start!"  
"And nearly knocked over an elder," Dustpelt scoffed at me before continuing his journey to the fresh-kill pile.

"Sorry!" I meowed apologetically before hearing Dewkit chuckle softly beside me.

"Don't laugh," I hissed, pushing him a little with my paw, "But now what do we do?"  
"We could play with some of the oak leaves that are falling," Snowkit suggested, "Practice our hunter's crouch and things."  
"That's dumb," Dewkit snorted, "What's the point of practicing if it's not on real prey?"  
My eyes lit up at the idea, "We could always sneak out!"  
"Are you crazy!?" Snowkit nearly howled, and Dewkit shoved his chest to quiet him, "Brightheart told us we need to stay in the clearing."  
"She never specified which clearing," I protested, "Which means she practically gave us permission to go into the forest!"  
"That doesn't sound right," Snowkit shook his pale head at us.

"Whatever, we're going anyways!"

"I-I'll tell!" he stammered, though his tone was more determined at the end.

"Then go do it," Dewkit replied just as forcefully, and with that the two of us scampered into Dirtplace, thanking Starclan no cat was there, and squeezing our way through the brush that surrounded the area.

I blinked the sunlight out of my eyes, squinting up into the endlessly high treetops while Dewkit looked down at the slope below us.

"It's so…open," he whispered.

"Come on!" I beckoned him, scampering over a particularly large tree root, "If we stay in one spot then the warriors will surely find us!"  
Dewkit followed suit, as we giggled and climbed through bushes and over rocks and all other sorts of obstacles the forest could possibly throw at us.

"This isn't so bad," Dewkit meowed when we had stopped to take a quick break on a patch of clovers.

"Not at all. And just imagine when we're warriors, and get to be as big as Bramblestar."  
"We could probably conquer the whole lakeside!" he purred in excitement.

After our short break we traveled onward, making sure to leave little marks on the trees with our claws so we could find our way back. Dewkit thought he smelled mouse once, but neither of us heard or saw anything.

"It does smell funny over here though," I commented, tilting up my snout to try and get a better whiff of it.

"It doesn't smell like any fresh-kill I've ever tasted," Dewkit pointed out, "But maybe it's something rare then! Wouldn't it be great to return to the clan with some delicious prey?"  
"I don't think it smells very delicious," I retorted, shriveling up my nose as the scent grew stronger in the direction we were headed.

"Quiet!" Dewkit hissed, "I can hear it rustling up ahead."  
We both sank low into the underbrush, but by the noises the prey was making it seemed big. It crashed through the leaves, snapping twigs beneath its paws, and I suddenly got a horrible sense of intimidation.

"Dewkit, I think we should-"

But I couldn't even finish my sentence before a pair of russet jaws snapped out at us, missing my nose by merely a whisker. We both screamed and stumbled backwards, scrabbling to get to our paws.

"Run!" Dewkit screeched, bolting ahead of me even though normally I was the fastest of the litter.

The orange creature behind me let out some sort of bellow and lunged forward with an inhumane speed, and I howled as his teeth sunk into the tip of my tail.

"Dewkit! Help!" I screamed, trying to claw away from the monster. Luckily my brother had not traveled far, and saw the fear in his wide eyes as much as determination as he rushed forward and slashed a set of tiny claws across the beast's muzzle.

"Take that!" he yelled, clawing at the creature's foreleg some more before he released the grip on my tail and hurled around to face Dewkit.

"Someone help us!" I shouted as loudly as possible, spinning around to help Dewkit.

But it was all too late. Time slowed around me, blood pounded in my ears, and my legs shook as they threatened to collapse beneath me. The monster lunged forward, teeth bared towards Dewkit. I heard one last gurgling scream escape his throat before the beast's jaws were clamped around it, blood dripping down the sides. He whipped his head back and forth a few times, causing me to tremble at the sound of the crunching of bones as he did so. Then he tossed Dewkit's body aside, just like you would to piece of prey, and snarled loudly at me. I ran.

I hurled myself back down the trail where we had come from, feeling the hot breath of the monster right on my heels. I screamed the entire way, hoping and praying that some warrior wound come and save me.

That was when my eyes flitted for just a split second, and I noticed the rabbit hole. Without even truly thinking, I launched myself into the crowded space. I couldn't see, I couldn't hear over my own heartbeat, I could hardly even feel my own limbs. But I knew the only safety was ahead, and for now that's all my distorted mind could strive for.

**Just to clear this up a bit, that russet monster was indeed a fox. Also, you'll soon see that the chapters stay in Amber's POV, but switch back and forth between current times and the past. Based on the context you should pretty much always be able to tell which time period it's taking place in (: PLEASE REVIEW!**


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